Guest Post ~ You Are Not Inerrant
“You must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool.” Physicist Richard Feynman
In Leo Tolstoy’s novel The Death of Ivan Ilych, the protagonist, Ivan Ilych, is a smart, competent attorney dying from an unknown cause. Tolstoy describes a scene in which Ivan has a sobering realization while gazing at his sleeping daughter, Gerasim.
“Ivan Ilych’s physical sufferings were terrible, but worse than the physical sufferings were his mental sufferings which were his chief torture.
“His mental sufferings were due to the fact that at night, as he looked at Gerasim’s sleepy, good-natured face with its prominent cheek-bones, the question suddenly occurred to him: ‘What if my whole life has been wrong?’
“It occurred to him that what had appeared perfectly impossible before, namely that he had not spent his life as he should have done, might after all be true.”
What a probing and hopefully troubling question.
We are all wrong. Both as individuals and collectively, we are wrong about many things.
As a species (homo sapiens), we are undoubtedly and currently doing things that are terribly wrong. Just look at some of the failings of the recent past.
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- Slavery in the United States was the legal institution of human chattel, primarily of Africans and African-Americans, that existed from our country’s founding in 1776 until the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865 (only 250 years ago).
- After 3,000 years of being considered a wise medical procedure, bloodletting has only recently—in the late 19th century—been discredited as a treatment for most ailments. America’s first president, George Washington, allegedly had 80 ounces of blood drained from his body in a last-ditch effort to save his life.
In the near and distant future, and for the rest of human history, humans will look with aghast at things we now consider normal and acceptable. What we accept as best-practices in the 21st century will be considered uninformed, unnecessary, even harmful, and wrong. (I’ll make a prediction: in the near future we will wonder why, in this modern era, health care was not readily available to every person on the planet.)
On a personal level, you and I are wrong about many things. There are specific areas of our lives that are wrong and need to change.
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- What if you have lived a self-centered life?
- What if you have neglected your family?
- What if you have not lived authentically?
- What if you have pursued the wrong career?
- What if you are racist?
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When was the last time you admitted being wrong and revised your opinion accordingly? Know this: there are areas of your life in which you are wrong. If you think you’re an exception to this statement, your pushback betrays your naiveté, lack of self-awareness, and error.
The good news is, we can change. Thoreau said, “I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life through conscious endeavor.”
Take an audit of your life; particularly consider areas in which you have a fixed mindset – areas that have been unassailable, uneditable, and beyond reproach. Also investigate areas that are part of your cultural heritage – ideologies that you inherited from your family and society. (Remember, you were not born with any opinions or beliefs; they’re not part of your DNA, you choose to endorse them.) Consider your blind spots; everyone has at least one. (You’ll need help you on this issue because you are…blinded…to your your blind spot.)
If taken seriously, this exploration could be one of the most significant and revealing events of your life.
We often think that if we admit we are wrong, people will think less of us. I think just the opposite; people will admire us. I’ll close with this story from Adam Grant’s book, Think Again (page 73).
“In the early 1990s, the British physicist Andrew Lyne published a major discovery in the world’s most prestigious science journal. He presented the first evidence that a planet could orbit a neutron star – a star that had exploded into a supernova. Several months later, while preparing to give a presentation at an astronomy conference, he noticed that he hadn’t adjusted for the fact that the Earth moves in an elliptical orbit, not a circular one. He was embarrassingly, horribly wrong. The planet he had discovered didn’t exist.
“In front of hundreds of colleagues, Andrew walked onto the ballroom stage and admitted his mistake. When he finished his confession, the room exploded in a standing ovation. One astrophysicist called it “the most honorable thing I’ve ever seen.”
Comments
#ReimaginePRAYER…because only God is inerrant.
(My response to a prayer ministry emessage)
A Facebook Conversation - - -
Eric Kouns
HOW I SEE IT
Eric Kouns
The virtue most lacking in contemporary culture is HUMILITY. The character flaw most prominent and destructive is ARROGANCE.
The quality of human reason in shortest supply is CRITICAL THINKING. And the emotion most detrimental to social progress, racial harmony, ethnic and ideological reconciliation, and international peace is FEAR.
We fear people and ideas we do not understand. We fear the possibility that we might be wrong, and we fear the uncertain consequences if we admit that possibility.
So we double down on our cherished assumptions. Eventually, we regard every position and point of view except ours as not only wrong but also EVIL. Those who dare to challenge our beliefs are not merely our opponents; they become our ENEMIES.
Fear yields arrogance as a defense mechanism. Arrogance undermines critical thinking skills.
We convince ourselves that superficial thinking is both sufficient and efficient. The result is paranoia, an inability to empathize, and hostility.
This repetitive sequence (fear -> arrogance -> shallow thinking -> paranoia) feeds on itself. It destroys relationships and causes marriages to break down.
It prevents racial harmony and ethnic reconciliation, encourages social and economic inequality, and results in slavery, genocide, and war.
We cannot understand, accept, or love what we fear.
Some dangers are real, of course, so some fear is legitimate and prudent. Most fear, however, is groundless and unreasonable.
Discerning leadership is key to breaking this vicious cycle and cultivating an environment where peace and harmony can flourish.
A bad leader provokes and encourages unreasonable fear as a means to achieve and maintain power.
On the other hand, an effective leader, with an eye on the common good, distinguishes between legitimate fear and paranoia, channels the former, and dispels the latter.
Perhaps this is why the most repeated command in the Bible is “Fear not.”
Peace.
What methodology has proven to bring about change?
“You must not fool your flock, and Christian leaders are most certainly the people doing the fooling.”
Christ did not come to earth on December 25th. You know this!
There is no Scripture dictating Advent or Lent or Holy Week. You know this!
The name Easter comes from a pagan celebration. You know this! Yet you lead the flock on Resurrection Sunday under this pagan label.
Why do we celebrate Christmas? Is it our finest hour that God Himself had to come to earth to save us? What does “Merry Christmas” mean? “Yahoo! A baby is born to be horribly slaughtered! And we get ‘out of hell’ for free?”
Your flock should be solemnly led, in humility, in commemorating this event. You know this!
Now reread Richard Feynman’s post replacing any personal references by alluding to organized religion.
Christ never misrepresented Himself to us. Why is it acceptable, then, for Christian leaders to misrepresent anything about Christ to others.
#ItSeemsToMe, that the opposition is, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, organized religion… and its leaders.
Repent. Reform. Reimagine. Avoid a millstone.